Preschool & Kindergarten

The goal of the preschool at Tate’s School is to address the developmental readiness of the individual child. Teachers use various methods in the classroom including manipulatives, centers, whole language, and hands-on activities. Students also share in exploratory art activities. The primary source of learning is from the students’ relationship with their physical and social environment. The positive learning experience in preschool lays the foundation for successful social interaction and strong academic skills needed for a bright future while also instilling a lifelong love of learning.

Kindergarten
The method of using centers and manipulatives carries over from preschool, but the emphasis in kindergarten is academically focused with subject areas in language arts, math, pre-writing skills, science, health, and social studies being taught through thematic units. Pre-reading and reading skills are addressed through phonics and literature-based lessons. Listening and speaking abilities are also addressed and numerous field trips are used to reinforce concepts being studied in the classroom. Math experiences are reality-based, academically focused, and exploratory in nature.

Each week our preschool and Kindergarten students head out into the forest to explore and learn in a child-inspired, inquiry-based form of adventure. Young students enjoy forest time where they can build a city out of rocks and sticks, discover which items in nature sink or float in a mud puddle or visit the pond and watch an insect go about its’ day.